Bamburi Cement targets Lamu refinery supply contract with over one million tonnes on offer
Bamburi Cement Makupa Bridge concrete. Photo, Courtesy
The Mombasa-based manufacturer says it can deliver specialist cement and concrete products across the full construction cycle of the Dangote-backed project
By Brian Gitonga
Bamburi Cement Plc has confirmed it is actively pursuing a supply contract for the Lamu Crude Oil Refinery, saying it has the manufacturing capacity to deliver more than one million tonnes of cement and concrete products for the project from its Mombasa plant.
The company’s Chief Executive Officer, Geoffrey Ndugwa, said Bamburi is positioning itself to supply the Dangote East Africa Petroleum Refinery and Petrochemical Special Economic Zone with specialist cement and concrete products throughout the project’s development cycle. The refinery, described as the world’s largest single-train crude oil refinery at a planned capacity of 700,000 barrels per day, is expected to consume approximately one million tonnes of cement and concrete solutions across its civil and related construction works.
Central to Bamburi’s commercial proposition is its DuraCem Cement — a 42.5-grade specialty product that is sulfate- and chloride-resistant and suited to large-scale or marine construction environments. The company is also offering its Ultra-series concrete range, which includes Ultra-Waterproof Concrete for moisture-prone areas, Ultra-Self Compacting Concrete for seamless pours, Pervious Concrete for drainage applications, and Ultra-Fibre Reinforced Concrete designed for crack resistance. All products are locally manufactured.
“The civil and related construction works for the 700,000 barrel-per-day refinery will consume approximately one million tonnes of cement and concrete solutions, and we are well positioned to manufacture and deliver to the project site from our Mombasa plant,” Ndugwa said.
The bid is underpinned by assurances from project officials that the refinery will prioritise locally manufactured products — an undertaking that Bamburi says supports the commercial case for its involvement. Official reports indicate the refinery has been designed with the flexibility to process a wide variety of crude oils, from light to heavy grades, drawing feedstocks from multiple regions to reduce dependence on any single supply source.
Bamburi has built its recent track record on a series of major national infrastructure projects, having supplied cement and concrete for the Standard Gauge Railway, the Rironi–Mau Summit Road, Dongo Kundu Highway, Mwache Dam, Thwake Dam, Makupa Bridge, and the Talanta Sports Stadium, among others.
The Lamu opportunity comes as Bamburi, a member of the Amsons Group, pursues a significant expansion of its own production capacity. Late last year, the company signed a USD250M — KSh32B — Engineering, Procurement, and Construction contract with Sinoma CBMI Construction Co. Ltd for a turnkey clinkerisation factory in Matuga, Kwale County. The facility, incorporating carbon-neutral technologies, is designed to produce 1.6 million tonnes of clinker annually.
The plant is central to Bamburi’s strategy to substantially expand its manufacturing base. On completion, the company projects that its clinker production capacity will rise from one million to 2.6 million tonnes annually, while cement production capacity grows from 1.8 million to four million tonnes — more than doubling its current output and positioning it to compete for large-scale supply contracts of the scale that the Lamu refinery represents.
Similar Posts by The Mt Kenya Times:
- Mt Kenya Times ePAPER October 3, 2026
- Ruto puts Coast landlords on notice over squatter harassment
- Nairobi lights candles for Raila in Uhuru Park tribute
- Jambojet returns to Entebbe with daily flights and fares from KSh22,950
- From Lamu to the region: What the Dangote Refinery could mean for Kenya’s energy economy
About the Author
